Dr Chloe Killen

Dr Chloe Killen is a Communication and Media scholar and practice-based researcher within the School of Creative Industries. Her research focuses on creativity and cultural production to examine how symbolic messages, that is messages with meaning, are created. She has extensively examined the creative industry of publishing to illustrate how Australian children’s literature is produced in a system of individual, social, and cultural contexts. More recently, Chloe has focused on developing alternative approaches to science communication in order to communicate stories of threatened species and biodiversity loss. 

Chloe has taught into Communication and Media programs since 2008 and Visual Communication Design programs since 2013, with experience lecturing, tutoring, and course co-ordinating in both. The core theory and elective production courses she has taught feed into a range of majors including News and Digital Media, Media Production, PR, Media Studies, Illustration, Graphic Communication and Typography, and Design and Technology for the Bachelor of Education (Secondary).

Dr Killen is a researcher in the Future Work Research Group inside the FASTlab Research Centre of the School of Creative Industries. She has a number of C1 journal articles, E1 conference papers, J1 non-traditional research outputs (NTROs) and been involved in grants valued at $29700. Chloe has been a member of Australian & New Zealand Communication Association (ANZCA), the Australasian Association of Writing Programs, and an Associate Editor for the International Journal of The Book (Commonground Publishing). 

In addition to this research focus on creativity, Chloe maintains her own creative practice as a ceramic artist. She has recently been collaborating with Kevina-Jo Smith, an environmental artist, on a number of installations exploring issues from threatened flora species and biodiversity loss, to the constraining experiences of motherhood during COVID-19. These professional projects reinforce Chloe’s teaching and research practice. 

Chloe’s previous industry work includes providing manuscript assessments for picture book authors, strategic communications for the Blue Mountains Economic Enterprise (BMEE) to create MTNS MADE, the cultural identity for the creative industries of the Blue Mountains region, writing and editing for various publications, and co-founder of The All Story, a curated gallery in Newcastle, Australia.

Research Expertise 

Chloe was awarded her PhD in February 2016, from the University of Newcastle, titled True Stories About Tall Tales: A study of creativity and cultural production in contemporary Australian children’s picture books. Her research concluded that rather than the product of a singular individual, Australian children’s picture books are produced, distributed, and received within a complex relation of systemic social and cultural elements. This case study research was interdisciplinary in nature and draws upon several fundamental theories relevant to visual communication design as well as communication and media. 

As an early career researcher, Chloe has made a number of contributions to her field of research. She was the first to apply Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi's systems model of creativity and Pierre Bourdieu's notions of cultural production to the field of Australian children’s literature. This has been presented and published nationally and internationally at conferences including Australia and New Zealand Communication Association (ANZCA), Australasian Association of Writing Program, Biennial Congress of the Australasian Children’s Literature Association for Research, and Biennial Congress of the International Research Society for Children’s Literature, as well as journals such as Altitude, Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice, and The International Journal of the Book. She has also completed a number of J1 non-traditional research outputs (NTRO), and holds grants totalling $29700. 

Killen has employed a number of methodological approaches in her research including case study, Practitioner-Based Enquiry (PBE), and action research. These largely qualitative approaches involve participant observation, in-depth interviews, artefact analysis, and significant reflective and reflexive thinking. She has previously worked as a Research Assistant for a number of academics in the School of Creative Industries and the Faculty of Health.

Chloe is currently the Senior Research Officer on the research project ‘Communicating as Community: An Action Research, Arts-Based Approach to Species Survival in the Ourimbah Creek Valley’. This project seeks to demonstrate that multiple modes of storytelling will assist in communicating critical ideas to a community who may not be open to dry facts about biodiversity. Specifically, it utilises food and art making practices as alternative forms of science communication to publicise threatened species, build knowledge of local biodiversity, and encourage community change.

She is also engaged in a continuing reflective study of collaborative practice with artist Kevina-Jo Smith. With this wide-ranging professional experience and research knowledge, Chloe brings a valued set of skills to her research projects.

Teaching Expertise 

Chloe has taught core theory and elective professional courses for Communication and Media programs since 2008 as well as Visual Communication Design programs since 2013. She has worked as a sessional academic, lecturer, tutor and course coordinator at the University of Newcastle, Newcastle International College, and Billy Blue College of Design. At Billy Blue, she wrote three core subjects for the Bachelor of Communication Design and the capstone research project for the Master of Design, and course co-ordinated two of these across multiple campuses (Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane) simultaneously.

Over her teaching career, Chloe has received consistently positive SFTs and SFCs which average 4.7/5 on the question of student satisfaction. She has received several commendations from the Pro Vice Chancellor for her contribution to teaching, and personal commendations from various Course Coordinators and Program Managers.

Her teaching practice is centred around the co-creation of learning between teacher and student. With an approach that sees theory and practice as deeply entwined, Chloe sets the conditions for her students to develop their growing abilities in a systems centred learning approach. She shares her enthusiasm and interest in theory to demonstrate that knowledge gathering, and critical thinking can be an enjoyable process. As a result, her classes have regular high attendance, retention, completion, and engagement in the form of robust class discussion, and quality assessment submissions. 

Student feedback often notes Chloe’s ability to blend theory and practice, facilitate class discussions, ensure content relevancy, provide constructive and balanced feedback, and many comments note her level of enthusiasm. In 2019, she received a student nomination for the University of Newcastle’s Sessional Academic Professional Development Award. Chloe was one of only four finalists and upon noting the high calibre of the finalists, they were all awarded a prize. An excerpt:

“Dr Chloe Killen is an asset to the University of Newcastle and during my four years at this school, she has been one of the most enthusiastic and engaging tutorial teachers I have had… Being able to get a whole classroom to excitedly participate in conversations about poststructuralist perspectives and copyright every week should be considered a modern miracle. Chloe achieves this easily and takes the effort to remember everyone's name, include the quiet students, and cultivates a friendly and inviting environment that is open to everyone to contribute to the conversation” (Student Nomination, October 2019)

Student Feedback on Teaching 2020, Semester 1 – CMNS1234 Media and Communication Concepts

• Chloe Killen is extremely engaging and informative, bringing a very dry topic to life. Chloe went above and beyond in every tutorial to ensure that we were all comprehending and engaging with the information. Chloe went to great lengths to break down the lecture content and present it in terms that we could understand and actually relate to. I very nearly withdrew from this course because I was just struggling so much to connect with the lectures and the readings. In an already overwhelming time, I did not believe that I could finish strong or present any decent work. However, Chloe encouraged and supported [the class] to stick with (comment removed for student confidentiality). I persevered and now have found that I do actually understand the information and was able to produce work that I could be proud of. I honestly will always remember this as an example of how a good teacher can be the difference between understanding and complete ignorance.

• Chloe was amazing doing the online collaborate tutorials!! She really understood what we were going through and was always incredibly supportive, encouraging and kind. Chloe went above and beyond for us, even making crosswords to help us study for the end of semester test, which I absolutely loved! I'm so lucky I was able to have her as a teacher.

• Her ability to clarify difficult concepts is extraordinary, as well as her attentiveness to follow up with questions and issues from students. She creates a safe/fun space in order for students to contribute to class discussion.

Student Feedback on Teaching 2020, Semester 1 – CMNS2800 Creative Industries Entrepreneurship

• Chloe was amazing at relating the theories and topics covered in lectures and relating them back to relevant situations, and particularly about working within the creative industries. Hearing about her experiences was very helpful, and always prompted great class discussion. She created a supportive class environment where everyone felt they could talk about their ideas and questions, and I felt the class was very industry-relevant. I always looked forward to our classes! 

• Chloe handled the move to online tutorials extremely well compared to my experience with other tutors. In this course she created a safe space for discussions not only on the course content but how what we are learning relates to current events in the world.

Student Feedback on Teaching 2020, Semester 1 – CMNS3320 Global Trends in Media and Communication

• I LOVED discussions in Chloe's class. I think Chloe facilitated really interesting conversations and related this to real-world practice in a way that was easy to understand and learn from. I believe that despite this semester’s circumstances, the quality of discussion in Chloe's tutorials allowed me to learn and take away key messages from this course.

• Chloe is a wonderful tutor for facilitating an open and safe space for discussion. Chloe fosters really great discussion in tutorials.

• Chloe is very structured and straight-forward with her teaching which leaves little room for confusion. She shows an active interest in our lives and our progress in learning the course material.

Administrative Experience 

Chloe has co-ordinated first and second year courses in the Bachelor of Communication Design across multiple campuses (Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane) at Billy Blue College of Design. She also initiated and facilitated a regular research group to assist staff in the design discipline with their Research Higher Degrees. She participated in a number of committees and working groups at Billy Blue focused on key business areas, including promoting staff engagement through career opportunities and boosting internal support for RHD students.

Killen has reviewed conference papers, journal articles, and been asked to mark Honours and PhD theses. Killen has been a member of Australian & New Zealand Communication Association (ANZCA), the Australasian Association of Writing Programs, and an Associate Editor for the International Journal of The Book (Commonground Publishing). 

Collaborations 

Dr Killen is collaborating with a number of industry partners including the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment, the Darkinjung Local Aboriginal Land Council, and the Rainforest Sanctuary at the Forest of Tranquility on a project entitled ‘Communication as Community’. This action research project uses multiply modes of storytelling and community art making practices as a form of effective science communication to publicise and protect threatened species, build knowledge of local biodiversity, and encourage community change.

She also regularly collaborates with artist Kevina-Jo Smith on site specific art installations that are a combination of found and upcycled materials as well as purpose made ceramic work. These projects range from exploring collaboration via distance during COVID-19 and themes of motherhood, to environmental awareness of threatened species and biodiversity loss. Their work has already been reported in the popular press (print and radio) and is presently being written up in a number of scholarly publications. 

Chloe has also worked a strategist and writer for various projects. The most recent was MTNS MADE, a brand created to unite the creative industries in the Blue Mountains under the umbrella of the Blue Mountains Economic Enterprise. The work included strategic development, research, writing featured profiles and editing the broadsheet publication. This practical engagement with the creative industries sector informs and supports Chloe’s teaching and research and demonstrates Killen’s aptitude for administration and project management.